Give & Go: UAlbany and Siena men's hoops

Mark Singelais and Tim Wilkin

Updated 6:57 am, Wednesday, February 6, 2013

TIM: The much-anticipated announcement of the ESPN BracketBusters has come and gone, and now we know that UAlbany will take a run on the road against Fairfield, and Siena will play Radford at home. Both games do little to get the blood running, if you ask me. And, although both Will Brown and Mitch Buonaguro won't say it, this is a colossal pain in the you-know-where. In late February, teams are looking to finish their conference seasons strong. They don't need — or want — a nonconference game. The BracketBusters has run its course. After 11 years, it's a good thing that it's over after this year. What say you?

MARK: If you're Siena, look at it this way: It's a home game against a fairly weak opponent, a decent chance for a victory when those have been scarce. For UAlbany, it's a chance to pick up what I think would be a pretty good road win and momentum going into the America East tournament. All that said, I'm not going to miss the BracketBusters. It has run its course, and enthusiasm for it has waned. And I doubt Siena is very excited about the return trip to Radford in a year or two.

More Information

Poll question

Is ESPN making the right choice by pulling the plug on the BracketBusters after an 11-year run?

TIM: Yup. Albany still has to return a game at Rider for next season, because the Broncs played up here in last year's BracketBusters. I still don't think a BracketBusters win does much for momentum, because then you jump right back into the league schedule. UAlbany will have two games left in the regular season after playing at Fairfield: home with New Hampshire and then on the road at Stony Brook. UAlbany could be on a nice little run before the BracketBusters (games at UMBC and Maine, home with Hartford and then at Boston University). I think BracketBusters can kill momentum. Good riddance to it. Speaking of momentum, Siena lost some of it Monday night losing to Fairfield. Agree?

MARK: I remember 2008, when Siena had to go to Boise State to play on ESPN3. The Saints had just lost two straight. At the time, it seemed like a meaningless trip, but Siena won in a blowout and didn't lose again until the NCAA Tournament. So the BracketBusters can be helpful. As for this year's Saints, whatever momentum they had ran into a brick wall named Fairfield. And now it's three straight road games, starting with Loyola. It's not looking pretty.

TIM: No, it's not. But, who knows? Siena still hasn't won a game this year that no one expected. That still could be coming, maybe Friday. UAlbany only has two home games left — wow, where has this season gone? — and four on the road. Then it's the tournament, and the quarters and semis are here. But, that's a story for another day.

MARK: I think Siena will lose two of its next three on the road, with a win at Saint Peter's on Sunday. Then it's back to Times Union Center for the final three home games. You're right. It is hard to believe.